IRVINE, Calif. - The Big West had its first representatives selected Monday of the 2023 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft, as the Long Beach State trio of catcher Connor Burns, corner infielder Jonathon Long and southpaw Graham Osman were taken off the board around CSUN right-hander Lucas Braun, Cal State Fullerton outfielder Nate Nankil, UC Davis righty Danny Carrion, UC Irvine’s Caden Kendle, and fellow outfielder Jared Sundstrom of UC Santa Barbara.

Rounds three through 10 took place on Monday. This year’s draft will conclude with 10 final rounds on Tuesday, July 11, beginning at 11 a.m. PT with live coverage on MLB.com.

Burns and Long, both true juniors, were among four Dirtbags to start all 55 games, with the former doing so entirely behind the plate. The first-ever two-time recipient of The Big West Defensive Player of the Year award over the past two seasons, Burns went to the Cincinnati Reds near the top of the fifth round at No. 141. The product of Chino fielded at a .991 clip in 2023 with just five errors over 588 defensive chances and three passed balls, throwing out 15 of 32 would-be base-stealers (.469). In addition, Burns improved tremendously with the bat, hitting .307 (61-for-199) from the right side with 38 runs, 50 RBI, and an added power stroke good for 14 doubles, two triples and 14 home runs.

Braun was the sixth-round choice (No. 189) of the Atlanta Braves. The second-year Matador and Los Angeles native who transferred from the University of San Diego went 6-5 with a 4.83 ERA as CSUN’s Friday starter this spring, ranking third in The Big West in strikeouts (100) and tied for third in innings pitched (91.1). Drawing 15 starts, Braun became the first Matador to reach 100 strikeouts since 2016, notching a season-high 10 on three occasions. Braun fanned 77 over 74.1 frames in 2022.

Nankil went No. 196 overall early in the seventh round to the Oakland Athletics. The true junior from San Diego paced The Big West with 21 doubles and 237 at-bats, and was fourth in hits (75). Nankil batted .316 with 40 runs, five home runs, 39 RBI, 23 walks and five stolen bases, appearing in 55 of Fullerton’s 56 games en route to a return to an NCAA regional as the conference’s automatic qualifier. Nankil in fact made the Stanford Regional All-Tournament Team as the Titans went 1-2, and played error-free baseball in 2023 over 123 chances (one assist).

Carrion went to the Pittsburgh Pirates near the top of the ninth round (No. 257). The 6-foot-3, fourth-year junior right-hander from Winters made 19 appearances this past season, all in relief, with an even 3-3 win-loss record, a 2.45 ERA, 1.16 WHIP, two saves, two combined shutouts, a .231 opponent batting average, 34 strikeouts and 10 walks. Carrion allowed just five extra-base hits, none of them home runs, across 29.1 innings pitched.

Long is a member of the Chicago Cubs organization as their ninth-round selection at No. 266 overall. The native of Orange paced LBSU in batting average (.312), OPS (1.004), hits (67), doubles (17), home runs (15), RBI (52), total bases (129), walks (29) and on-base percentage (.404) as The Big West’s joint leader in long balls. Long was charged with only four errors defensively across 342 chances (.988) at first base and third, and was part of 19 double plays.

Osman joins LBSU battery mate Burns with the Reds as their 10th-round choice at No. 288. The fourth-year junior and first-year Arizona State transfer from Morrison, Colo., made 15 appearances, all starts, with a 6-2 mark, 4.60 ERA, 1.37 WHIP, two combined shutouts, a .247 opposing batting average and 89 strikeouts (33 walks) in 78.1 innings. Osman tied for third in Division I with 34 pitching appearances (all but one in relief) as a second-year Sun Devil in 2021.

The 2023 Big West Co-Field Player of the Year, Kendle was grabbed by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 10th round at No. 305. The true junior from Huntington Beach easily topped the conference in runs (69) by 12 and was second in both hits (77) and RBI (56). One of two Anteaters to start all 55 contests, Kendle hit .335 and had 16 doubles, three triples, eight home runs, 29 walks, a .434 on-base percentage, .969 OPS, and seven steals on nine attempts.

Sundstrom was the Seattle Mariners’ 10th-rounder (No. 307) just moments after Kendle. The slugger completed a first season for the Gauchos as a third-year junior who transferred from Santa Rosa Junior College. The Gualala native batted .322 (57-for-177) with league-leading totals of a .672 slugging percentage and 15 home runs (tied with Long). Sundstrom had 39 runs, 15 doubles, one triple, 43 RBI, 21 walks and a 1.071 OPS to go along with 11 steals on 13 tries in 50 games.

Burns, Kendle, Nankil and Sundstrom were voted by league skippers to the 2023 All-Big West First Team. Braun and Long were second-teamers, while Carrion garnered honorable mention. Kendle and Braun also made it onto the first and second team, respectively, in 2022, when Long picked up an honorable mention. Burns and Long participated in the MLB Draft Combine at Chase Field in Phoenix, Ariz., last month.

Also on Monday, Juaron Watts-Brown, who spent the 2023 season at Oklahoma State after two years at Long Beach State, went in the third round (No. 89 overall) to the Toronto Blue Jays. The right-handed flamethrower (235 strikeouts over 155.2 collegiate innings) out of Hanford redshirted as a Dirtbag in 2021 before firing the first individual no-hitter in program history on May 8, 2022.

Of last year’s top two Big West draftees, both from Cal Poly, shortstop Brooks Lee (No. 8 pick) is the No. 1 prospect in the Minnesota Twins organization (19th in all of MLB), and Drew Thorpe (No. 61) is the top-rated pitcher in the New York Yankees’ system (No. 6 overall).